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Oviers
The growing urban center of Oviers is prosperous from several centuries of royal favor courtesy of the house of Asilaunt whose grand royal complex of Montellais is only a carriage ride away. The city was originally founded as a shepherding settlement that grew quickly due to its great position of being at the fork of the two greatest rivers in northern Pavalon that merged to become the Avion River. The first great structure was the Tower d’Elanc, built upon an island just beyond the rivers fork. It would later be known infamously as the ‘Dowager Tower’ when the site became a political prison first under the Dukes of Oviers until the Duchy was revoked and the last duke and then later his widow (hence the name) was locked in the same prison their dynasty had thrown their rivals for generations. Surrounding the old fortress was the old, thick, and sturdy battlements of the original castle that has been overgrown by moss and grass nicknamed Greenwall. The city itself is split by the river into the north and the south banks with three river isles including Greenwall isles. The smaller two islands are down river, the larger of the two forms a channel with the mainland extends the Oviers Docks. The other contains the Oviers institute or rather the derelict complex of gardens and buildings that once housed it, some say the institute still operates underground with assistance from the Lantern-men but rumors among the small folk never amount to much. On the north bank, the city has a waterfront market forum that is backed by rows of guild halls and mercantile buildings. Past this is the Dourlaisdowne an increasingly dispersed neighborhood that goes right up to the thick forest of its namesake. To the west of this, the neighborhood of Plueton where the craftsmen and manufacturing of the city is concentrated, and the roads and walls are stained by the soot and waste of industry. Far down river and to the east the twin neighborhoods of Songhill and Dalmere are heavily populated and defined by cobblestone streets and large blue brick structures. Songhill is the site of the Pristine Palace of the Pavalonian Archon surrounded by Archonite administrative complexes, libraries, and Cion halls. Dalmere is an elegant quarter defined by the grand Montellais gate that leads to the palaces approach and is always passed when the monarchy enters the city. The neighborhood is renown for the great city mansions of the nobility as well as the iconic glamorous Swan park gardens. South of the river lies the greater expanse of the city and far more of its population. At its heart is the Grand District just south of the cities main harbor, here are the cities two great Archonry halls as well as the Royal residence in the city the Tevoire. The palace is built on an artificial island and is adorned with high Auran influenced marble architecture with column lined promenade encircling the complex and the primary building built into a horse shoe shape with several courtyards, garden terraces and open rooms that gives a sense of openness seen in more southern Archonite states. The Asilaunt’s use the palace as diplomatic and political venue in addition to Montellais, the royalty only resides in the Library Wing and barely in the winter if at all due to the cold winds that blows through the open-air marble structure with drafts of icy air. To the west, the Saddle quarter neighbors the Grand and Harbor districts with its wide through fairs that allows the high frequency of mounted travelers as well as the headquarters of the Armee de Royale. The area is defined by several armories, barracks, and smithies that form the spine of Pavalonian military might. To the west is the neighborhood of Ain Heights which extends into the cities south western outskirts and houses the region’s largest Volkaen Community. The southernmost and largest district of the city is the Horseshoe, a massive ring of residential communities that wraps around the more prolific areas and has the highest population density. To the east of all this and bridging the river to the Institute isle is Alineon, once the oldest and poorest portion of the city, the neighborhood has in recent years expanded as young merchants, intellectuals, and artists of every variety revived the old brownstone district. The area became thriving community where the most talented painters, musicians, poets, and philosophers would gather in wine houses to discuss intellectual matters and flourished with the visionist institute on their doorstep. Although with Renault’s suppression of the movement, book burnings, and witch hunt for scholars diminished but failed to fully quench the flame of intellectualism that was spread by the institute. Rumors swirl that these meetings still occur and that the scholarly tomes are still smuggled in and out as a lucrative commodity for the discrete educated individuals of the city. On the far side of the city at the fork of the metropolis’ two rivers sits the neighborhood of Sor Leon, a bustling district that is many markets some upstanding and some illicit that all are in the shadow of the Sor, a massive racing arena for the famous Predish horse races. Beyond the Sor sits the large crime infested area called Manibre, nicknamed the Macabre District. It was once the most affluent in the city until the choking cough spread and led to its evacuation and quarantine. Eventually resettled by vagrants, the former grandiose palaces of the nobility degraded into dilapidated communes that are suffocating in poverty and disease. The violent gangs of the area have more authority than the crown in some parts as the city tends to ignore the neighborhood as a region too far gone for assistance. The large district is one of the only walled areas of the city and was ironically built to keep out the degenerates it now serves to contain.